Awareness Post- Ellen Jewett

Vulpes Ferus, 20x10x18.5", air drying polymer clay, polymer, cold porcelain, no VOC resin, acrylic, mineral powder, metal, nylon fiber, 2024

Ellen Jewett creates natural history surrealist sculptures which is a blend of plants, animals, and sometimes man-made objects. Her work is based in a background in anthropology and other educated resources in order for her to accentuate the biological structures and accuracies of each piece, but still allowing her to tie in elements of imagination. She emphasizes the use of movement and negative space within her work like in Vulpes Ferus where she creates a spiral like shape with her use of movement and deliberate placement of negative space. I adore how her work flows across the eye so smoothly due to the movement in her pieces and the abstracted elements or waves that move the eyes along. The precision of the elements in her work that she abstracts or ties her imagination in while keeping the rest heavily realistic is beautiful. I have been leaning towards incorporating abstract elements into my art to create some juxtaposition within my work and I think Jewett does a very successful job at merging elements of imagination and

A Feral Antiquity II, no size given, air drying polymer clay, polymer, cold porcelain, no VOC resin, acrylic, mineral powder, metal, nylon fiber, 2015

realism together, so I can learn a lot from the way she uses abstract elements and movement in unity to create quite interesting and unique works. The highly polished detail mixed with the movement and imagination she creates in her work is something I am working to achieve, and even if I do work in a different medium than her, I think the underlying elements or compositions she uses in her pieces are something I can take inspiration from.

Along with this it is interesting how she only uses natural and locally-sourced materials along with leaving traces of imperfection in her work like fingerprints to create a more authentic impression. I think this could be similar to leaving visible brushstrokes in a painting as while the overall work is still highly polished those small "imperfection" give the whole work a more human feel.

Jewett's work has been featured in magazines, television, fine art anthropologies, text books, book covers, and other digital platforms. Her individual sculptures are featured in public and private collections across the world.

Learn more on her website: https://www.ellenjewettsculpture.com/

Recent CV:

November 2024 Paracosmic Escape, Modern Eden Gallery, San Francisco, California

May 4-25, 2024 Fable and Folklore, Copro Gallery, Santa Monica, California

January 18 - February 24 2024, Wild Hearts, Lighthouse ArtCenter, Tequesta, Florida

November 4 - December 3 2023, Serendipity, Haven Gallery, Long Island, New York

2023 Beautiful Bizarre Art Prize Jury Panel

September 2023, Small Works Show, BeinArt Gallery, Melbourne, Australia

March 11 - April 15th 2023, Secret Longings, Corey Helford Gallery, Los Angeles, California